


The Vampire Prince

by Toxic_Lavender



Category: A Hat in Time (Video Game)
Genre: Abusive Relationship, Animal Abuse, Blood, Character Death, Dadtcher, Emotional Abuse, F/M, Gore, Guts - Freeform, I guess so, Implied abuse, Manipulation, Minor Character Death, Mutilation, Snakes, Torture, any shipping is a lot later-, cannibalism???, chapter 1 and 3 take places 5 years prior, chapter 2 is a flashback, extremely heavy gore, grandpa connie, im tagging this as teen but please stay away if you cannot handle gore, later on, major character death in the beginning, maybe idk at this point, the original character is the florist's adopted brother, yeah babbby
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-01
Updated: 2020-12-31
Packaged: 2021-03-10 19:22:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 3
Words: 21,150
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28472316
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Toxic_Lavender/pseuds/Toxic_Lavender
Summary: Last seen buying flowers for his dearly beloved five years ago, Prince Luke of Subcon has been missing, along with the other royals. Subcon's Queen turned away from her people. Winters have become harsh and wild. To top it all off, a horrifying shadow creature roams the forest and village at night, snatching people and animals alike away, feeding off of their soul.
Relationships: Hat Kid & Snatcher (A Hat in Time), Hat Kid & The Prince (A Hat in Time), The Florist & Hat Kid (A Hat in Time), The Florist & Snatcher (A Hat in Time), The Florist & The Prince (A Hat in Time), The Florist/Snatcher (A Hat in Time), The Florist/The Prince (A Hat in Time)
Comments: 12
Kudos: 31





	1. First Blood

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Prince dangles from his lonely chains, waiting for someone to free him. Meanwhile, the villagers suffer in cold early Winter.

The Prince sneezed softly, the chains rattling weakly as they held him to the wall, dangling mere inches above the cellar floor. His body was trembling wildly, the freezing air burning against his skin. The cellar was dark and moist, furthering the cold atmosphere, and causing his throat to dry. He had no idea how long he’d been hanging from the cellar, having lost his sense of passing time from the shock of events just past. All he knew was that it was still day, the faint light shining from the cellar’s door having only faded just a bit, hinting that dusk could be arriving soon. 

It had happened so fast, it seemed like a blur in his head. He was finished with finals for his second year of law school abroad, and he decided to come back to his home in Subcon early, to reunite with Vanessa. He wanted it to be a secret, to surprise her. After all, she had been getting awfully lonely without him, or so she wrote in their daily letters back and forth to one another. Luke felt Vanessa would be thrilled to see him, and, ambitious as he was, he’d decided to try to make his surprise visit quite the event, with plans to shower Vanessa in gifts as an apology for not being able to come home during the last break he had.  
He remembered trying to get Vanessa flowers, having stopped to talk with the Florist as he bought them. The Florist, Primrose, had been a close friend of his since childhood- perhaps maybe his only friend, save for Vanessa. He had spoken with her, paying for the bouquet while confiding his plans to appeal to Vanessa with Primrose. As he did so, he saw someone run away out of the corner of his eye. That’s when it started to get blurry, and when events started to merge and fade. He had tried to speak with Vanessa in the manor, to give her the flowers. He wanted to hold her close, to try to calm her temperament, but he hadn’t even touched her shoulder when he felt an icy pain at his fingertips. Then she yelled something he couldn’t really remember, with hands grabbing him on either shoulder and dragging him away, locking him up and leaving him dangling where he was now.  
He couldn’t remember anything else, and even these events started to fade from his mind, like he had woken up from a nightmare. But the sight of Vanessa, hissing and screaming at him was very clear. He didn’t know why she was so angry. He didn’t know why she lashed out so lividly. Was it because of him?

It had to have been him. She had spoken about how much she missed him in her letters, and wanted him home… but when he’d done just that, she flew into a rage. It had to be his fault, but he couldn’t think of why. When she told him to befriend someone, he did, and when she told him not to, he wouldn’t. She told him what he should and shouldn’t eat, and he obeyed. He dressed how she wanted him to. If she wanted his presence, he would come and be there with her, even if he was busy. At law school, so far away from Subcon, when he would write to her about his day, he found that he was confused and stressed, not having her there to help him with his decisions. He didn’t know what he was doing without her.

He thought he’d done everything right. He’d gotten rid of his tutor at her request, even if it seemed silly to him. Was it the flowers? Vanessa loved when he brought her flowers, though. Was it the surprise? Should he have told her he was coming first?  
Luke lost his train of thought, instead focusing on his own breathing. The wisps of hot air that seeped from his mouth rose and twisted in the frosty cellar draft, like snakes climbing a tree. He felt his stomach twist in pain, having not eaten all day. His body was hungry, but after what just happened, he had no appetite left. Luke shut his eyes tightly, shaking a bit faster as the cellar doors swung open.

Vanessa was FURIOUS. Her mind was filled with thoughts of rage and anger at her Prince’s betrayal. How  _ DARE  _ he betray her like that! After all she had done for him, after all they’d been through, he’d go out and buy flowers for some  _ OTHER _ girl! The Florist wretch, no less! She’d been pacing, no, storming through her manor’s decorated halls, in absolute fury, the cold air whipping around her as she walked. Vanessa stepped down the stairs of the cellar, the water on each step freezing over as she got close.The door let out a strained squeal as it opened, the cold weather causing it to creak. Walking down into the cellar, she could see her ‘beloved’ Prince, dangling from his arms against the wall, where he was to be kept forever. He was hers and ONLY hers. It was wet and muggy, but she didn’t care. Only the Prince had to deal with it, while Vanessa was willing to deal with anything, just to be next to her Prince.

“Hello, my beloved Prince~”. She cooed raspily. She was sweetening her voice for him, though it was far from genuine, the fury geared towards him pulsing through her veins.

Luke lifted his head weakly to stare at her, struggling to keep his eyes open. He was exhausted, countless nights of studying for his finals just so he could get home early having caught up with him. He wanted to smile, and respond, to convince her to let him go. Maybe she just needed to be reasoned with.

“Va… Va…” He choked out, unable to speak. His throat was locking up, from the dry air and the adrenaline rush having taken its toll on him. 

Vanessa grinned as she grabbed Luke’s chin, holding it up softly to look at her. She spoke in a faux gentle tone, laced in venom. “Oh? What’s wrong? Got something to say, or does the cat got your tongue?”

Luke whimpered softly. His Pri- erm, Queen, was a shadow of her former self, in quite the literal sense. Her touch was so cold it stung, and her red eyes pierced right through him. Nevertheless, he reached out his hand as much as he could, given the restraints around his forearms. “N… Nes… N-N-Nessie…,” Luke stuttered over his words, “p… pl-ple… eas… e…” His chains rattled louder as Vanessa’s frigid presence chilled the air around him even more. He was practically convulsing in front of her. The chains were tight and held his arms stiff, but he desperately reached out to her, needing comfort. Any touch at all would be enough.

“‘Please?’ Please what? Do tell.” Vanessa scowled at Luke, her venom-laced tone hissing back at him again. She quickly jerked her hand away from him. Now was not the time for hand-holding.

Prince Luke made a sad expression, his hand lowering limply back down to his side. Something shifted in his pocket, a small velvet container rubbing against his side. He had long forgotten it was there. He sneezed again, leaning away from Vanessa as to not sneeze on her, before letting out a shivering sigh. “Nes… Nessie… if yo… you’d li… l-listen… I-I-I j… j-jusssst wan… wanna t-talk…”

Vanessa scoffed mockingly, spitting out her words as she spoke, like they were poison in her mouth. “Oh, so the traitor wants to talk. Interesting.” She knew the truth regardless, so why should she listen? He was cheating on her, that was final.

“T-T-Trait-tor…? N… N-N-Nesssie… I’m n… n-not…” Luke’s voice trailed off, as he absentmindedly started to reach for her again, until he saw her horrid glare. He felt his spine shake in fear, and he gave up again, dropping his arm and avoiding her eyes. He missed how they would cheesily gaze into each other’s eyes. Vanessa had beautiful blue eyes, the prettiest Luke had ever seen. Nothing like the horrid red lights staring into his soul. He let out a tender whimper. “Va… Vane… Vanessssa… I-I’m… I’m sorry… I don’t-t… dunno… what-t I did… I… I l-love y-you…”

Vanessa hissed and slapped him across the cheek, the sound echoing throughout the chamber. “You love me? Oh _ REALLY _ ?” Vanessa hissed angrily. “Then why were you with that FLORIST girl,  _ hmmm _ ? Clearly you were cheating!”

The Prince was in utter shock at the pain from his cheek, making a tiny, pained squeal after the impact. Where she had struck him had left a red mark, both burning like fire and stinging like ice. The Prince could feel a hot tear trail down his cheek, as it slowly froze and dropped onto the floor. Stunned by the blow to his face, he couldn’t find the strength to answer.

Vanessa growled. “Well?”

Luke finally pushed himself up enough to look at her, his voice weak. He wanted to deescalate the situation, to calm her down, but also to tell her the truth- that he wasn’t cheating, that he was faithful! He’d never even considered the idea, running off with Primrose, it almost made him sick. To think about doing that to poor Nessie. He looked her in the eyes, a small glint of hope still radiating off of them. “I… I-I wasss… wassn’t-t cheating… Nessss… th-the… the fl-flowersss… w-were forrr y-you…”

“Really? Then why were you holding that woman’s hand, hmm? Surely you wouldn’t hold someone’s hand like that, just to make a purchase.” Vanessa hissed in anger.

“I… it wasss… t-to confirm th-the purchassssse….” Luke felt his tongue slip on his words. His heart was racing faster and faster, as he felt a panic attack creeping up on him. He hated confrontations, he hated when Vanessa was angry at him, he hated it, he hated it, he hated it. The thought of making her cry or become angry was enough to twist a knot in his stomach, thought perhaps it was the hunger pangs. It was uncomfortable and made his head spin.

“I… I pr… promise… I on… only l-love you…” Luke whimpered and huffed softly. He felt the velvet box in his shirt’s pocket shift again. It was a terrible time… no atmosphere, no romance, and the room was thick with spite… but maybe, just maybe she would calm down…?  
That’s when Vanessa also noticed the lump in his pocket. She snatched it out of his shirt, giving a questioning hum as she inspected it.

Luke gave her a desperate look. “Pl… ple… ease… m-my pr… prin… princessss… l-let me go… I… I’ll do anything… a-anything y-you w-w-want… pl… pl-please…” He reached out to her for a third time, stretching for her chin, just out of reach behind the shadow strands of hair that hid her face.

Vanessa ignored Luke, instead interested in what was in the small box. She quickly became enraged at what she saw inside.

A pristine, diamond-studded ring.

Vanessa looked at Luke, her rage hidden behind the shadows of her magic. She was enraged. Luke whispered weakly, unaware of her anger, a soft smile curling up his lips, despite the pain. “Nessssie… w-will… y-you ma… marry me…?”  
Vanessa said nothing, closing the velvet box, ring still inside, and crushing it in her hand. She raised her other hand, and violently grabbed Luke’s throat, squeezing tightly. Her power flared, ice forming along the walls. Luke made a horrible choking noise, struggling to breathe under her grip, coughing out and being unable to inhale. He kicked and squirmed in his chains, trying to break free. “N-Ness- stop- hur- urt!”  
Vanessa said nothing in response, her grip becoming colder and colder. Luke shut his eyes tightly, thoughts racing. _I can’t breathe_ , he thought, _I CAN’T BREATHE_! He felt a sharp, icy pain down his spine, swirling in his neck, flooding his brain, spreading around his nervous system. He could just barely reach her hair, gently pushing it out of her face. He still couldn’t read her expression, shadows covering her whole body. _She… she’s just confused… having a delusion… she needs to just.. See me_ … He gagged weakly, and tried to pull his neck out of her grasp. The shiny crown atop his head tumbled down onto the wet floor with a small clatter. He felt his vision start to fade, his head becoming light, starting to roll from side to side. His body was going limp and weak. His chest was painfully tight. All he could feel was his hunger… his pain… it was so cold… so cold… “Ssss.... ssssssssss…” He whispered.

Vanessa finally let go, silently staring at him before turning around and leaving. Luke slowly started to come back to consciousness, still struggling to breathe from a layer of frost around his neck, which was frostbitten, ghastly shade of purple. He quickly inhaled several times, trying to fill his lungs with the air he had strangled out of him. He heard the doors lock shut, and whined weakly. He felt his whole body ache, but nothing hurt worse than the feeling in his chest as he saw Vanessa leave. He could see the velvet box, crushed and left soaked in the disgusting cellar water, and felt his heart sink, warm tears streaming down his face, only to freeze on his cheeks and chin. Gasps of sorrow and panic escaped his throat weakly, finally becoming aware that Vanessa had no intent of letting him out. Fearful thoughts spiraled in his mind and he called out to her. “Va- Vanessa!”

He received no answer.

Luke had no idea how long he’d been in the cellar. It felt like it had been ages. The light from the cellar door had been gone since that meeting with Vanessa, and hadn’t come back, giving him no way of knowing how long he’d been down here. The puddles on the floor had frozen over completely, with icy pillars growing up from the floor and walls. It was frigid, and the chains he was being held from had been rattled by his trembling so much so that their integrity was weakening. He couldn’t see himself, but Luke had been enveloped head to toe in a shadowy substance. Even his clothes were enveloped in the substance.

The feelings of hunger and pain had only worsened the longer he’d been down in the cellar, along with the cold growing even worse. He could see his hands, and thought he'd developed severe frostbite, and would die in a few hours. But he wasn’t focusing on his hands, rather his hunger instead. He wanted something, ANYTHING to soothe his stomach, and would do nearly anything for it. Except hurt someone. He’d never hurt anyone…

Where Vanessa had grabbed his neck, a chain of ice wrapped around him. It had grown progressively tighter around him, choking his breaths more and more with every passing hour. His whole body felt weak, from the fatigue of not being able to sleep. He was certain that he was having insomnia induced hallucinations, seeing shadows move and collect in strange ways, and hearing voices without seeing bodies. 

Vanessa hadn’t come back for him since their last confrontation, and he’d give anything just to wake up from this nightmare. The worst pain wasn’t the starving feeling, or even the terrible frostbite that was creeping up and down his arm, but rather from Vanessa’s words. Her screaming at him, slapping him, trying to suffocate him- it hurt him more than anything that could touch him. He was  _ heartbroken _ . She was his first, and only, real love, and she had gone and given him the absolute WORST cold shoulder. All he wanted was to make her happy with flowers and a night to reconnect after so long apart. His mind kept spiraling, to the hunger he felt, to his heartbreak, to the voices, and then back again.

Vanessa, meanwhile, was up in her room, having given up on the Prince. She was convinced that he didn’t love her, and that was a fact. She started to pace her room, slashing her claws at anything that had his face on it, or at anything that even reminded her of him, even just at the walls out of sheer anger. She soon became fed up with her room and left to go pace the hall, lashing out in a similar manner from before.

Luke could feel his eyelids become heavy and his breathing becoming shallow and slow. His breaths were visible, like ice dancing in the air. He could hear creaking footsteps from behind the cellar door, and perked up ever so slightly. He raised a weak arm as much as he could, little flecks of ice and frost crumbling off as it moved. His throat hurt so bad, but he choked out the few words he reserved his strength to say.

“Va... v-v-van-nessssa.... p... ple... ease... I-I’m f-f-faithf-ful... l-let me... g-g-go... w... we c-can p-put thisss b-behin-nd usss... w-we c-can ha... have c-cookies... a-and r... rrread m-my booksss... g-get m-ma-marrie-ed... e-even ha-have a... a k-kid…”

Luke hoped so dearly that Vanessa could hear him. His heart gave a painful twinge as he spoke, recalling all of what the two wanted to do with each other… if only she’d open the door and come down. His chains rattled just a little slower.

Vanessa stopped walking, but stood in dead silence. 

Luke started into a painful coughing fit. “Nes... n-n-nessa... pl...please.. i... it... h-hurtsss... t-t-to b-breathe…”

Nobody came.

The lonely prince fell back into the coughing fit, his throat being clogged with dark sludge. His head grew light and his stomach gave a painful twist- and his chains went still as his body began to shut down. Luke lurched forwards, the weight of his body becoming heavier by the second. His vision was blocked by dark fireworks, which spread across his field of view, taking over. He felt… so tired…

“N… Ness… sa…”

The Prince shut his eyes and hung limp.

  
  
  
  


After what felt like not even a second later, The Prince could feel gravity increase on him as he dropped limply to the floor, his arms slipping through his chains. He fell face-first into a chilling puddle of rain water and whatever else, his wet hair dripping down over his back as he spat the nasty concoction out of his mouth, the impact having shattered the icy hold around his throat. He couldn’t think right, as anytime his brain tried to string two and two together, it split and crumpled like paper, unable to continue the thought. Mind corrupted like body. There were only three feelings left. Pain. Cold. Hunger.  **Hunger. HUNGER.**

Vanessa had since gone back to her room, no longer concerned with the Prince’s lies, leaving the door of the cellar to the main halls locked. The shadow of the prince picked itself up, only fall back on his knees. His legs were limp and weak, trembling under the cold and the fatigue. The blood circulation had made them weak. Shaking his body akin to a wet dog, he crawled to the cellar’s main door, the vague memory of it once being open flashing in and out of his mind. He pushed against the door with his head, but it wouldn’t budge in the slightest. He turned to see another door, the opening cracked ever so slightly, letting in a little light and a small breeze. Quickly, the shadow scrambled through the cellar and to the door, headbutting it open, only to be met with the most blinding light he’d experienced. Everything was white and blue. Chills ran up and down his spine. He clambered out of the cellar, to which the doors promptly shut. The cold press of the white fluff on his hands and legs made him hiss and growl in pain. Finally free of the cellar, he became aware of his pains. How his legs and arms were sore, how his neck, though free of its chain, still felt so tight and dry. But the most agonizing sensation was that in his gut. He wanted to eat. He  **needed** to eat. Something. ANYTHING.

The former Prince stumbled around in the snow, trying and failing to gain a decent footing as he scoffed in discomfort every time he held his arms in the snow for too long. The white fluffy stuff was just dreadful, quickly trying to regain his footing to get into the forest, where there was not nearly as much white stuff, before stumbling back on the ground. He started to crawl outwards, where the snow was lighter and less; though here, it was also falling from the sky, and rather harshly. Though it was better on his sore arms. That’s when he heard.

He heard a voice. It was quiet, nearly as quiet as the grass under the snow. But he could hear a voice. Lots of voices. He followed instinct and got up, clinging to the trees to support his legs, and, albeit wobbly, he slowly ambled closer to the noise. 

The shadow crept through the dark forest, unfazed by the creatures that watched him in curiosity. Spiders, strange noises, the darkness, all of which would have creeped him out before did nothing to faze him now. 

The cold wasn’t nearly as bad close to the village, though it was still awful. The blizzard had reached the village only a day or two ago, and already, many Subconites were struggling, ill-prepared for the sudden whiteout- even though it was late summer. 

A duo of Subconites were gathered on a bench, huddling together in a blanket for warmth. The two friends were sitting not too far from the Florist’s shop, which was near the forest for the scenic view, and for access to the forest’s wonderful botany. Though the Florist, named Primrose, had bigger issues on her mind. She was worried that the sudden temperature shift could threaten to kill some of her plants. But there wasn’t much else that she could do for her plants, so she sat in the front of her store, huddled with her assistant, and brother, Sage. She’d gotten them both the winter blankets from their storage room, drinking hot drinks while watching the people outside. 

The Prince perked up the moment he could identify the source of the noise. Two small, young cloaked figures, talking together. He felt himself grow hungrier, watching the two creatures stand idle in front of him.

Both subconites wore fox masks, though one’s eyes were blue, and the other green. The one with blue eyes, the taller and leaner of the two, was trying to talk about how beautiful the sky looked in the snow storm, while it was still calm. The smaller, green-eyed Subconite wasn’t as optimistic.

“I… I haven’t seen the P-Prince in a bit.” The smaller Subconite leaned into his friend, who felt really warm through their cloaks. The cheerful demeanor of the other Subconite, which was put up to help cope with the stress, faltered, then faded.

“Yeah, you’re right.”

“I wo-wonder where h-he is. I s-saw him b-before the blizzard started-d, r-running t-t-to the man-n-nor.”

The shadow intently watched the essence coming off of the smaller Subconite. It was attracting him, beckoning him closer, like bleeding fish to a shark. He stalked closer behind, where the Subconites couldn’t see, facing away from the forest. The villagers were used to strange creatures, but there hadn’t been any attacks from hostile monsters in many years, and they had no fear of the creatures that lurked in the woods. Most creatures never strayed too close to the forest’s edge anyways. 

“Brrr…” One of the Subconite’s felt a chill down his spine, shaking himself loose. “It’ssss sssso c-c-cold…” The other nodded quickly in agreement. 

The shadow mindlessly stepped on a twig, all three of them going stiff and still in response. The two friends didn’t dare turn around, but had they done so, they would have seen two yellow, glowing eyes peering at them, paired with a similarly glowing mouth, curved into a wretched grin.

But someone saw. Primrose. Sage had nodded off, but Primrose intently watched with uncertainty, on the verge of going to warn the Subconites- but something held her still. Watching.

A small growl pierced the thick atmosphere. It almost sounded like... laughter. Before either Subconite could react, two shadowy arms lunged out of the darkness and grabbed the small villager, one hand wrapped around his arm, and the other firmly latched onto his neck.

“PECK PECK PECKPECKPECKPECK HELP ME!” The Subconite reached out aimlessly for help, while his friend squeaked back in horror, before grabbing onto his friend’s arms and pulling against the shadows’ grip. 

The monster roared out, peeved that something was giving him a resistance to his pull. In life, Luke was pitifully weak. He was much more interested in his studies, in sewing, in his pets, in Vanessa, to even bother with bodybuilding. But now, wrapped in shadows and mind in disarray, he found strength he never knew he had. He grabbed both of the villager’s arms, held them tight, and then YANKED. So harshly that several grotesque snapping noises could be heard. “OWOWOWOWOWOWOWOWWWW!!!” The pull launched both Subconites forwards, into the dark forest.The tall villager squeaked and scrambled out of the forest, running to Primrose’s store. Primrose, now fearful and worried, grabbed her wooden broom and ran out of the storefront and into the forest.

The small Subconite fell back onto whatever had dragged him backwards, groaning at the strained feeling in his arms. He tried sitting up, to which his arms responded, though they were weak and very painful to move. The shadow made an angry huff and kicked the Subconite off his chest, panting and growling like a mad dog. The villager couldn’t see much of what was threatening him, with only the facial features visible. But at that, it wasn’t very hard to classify.  
“M-M-MONSTER!!!” He shrieked. The Prince couldn’t hesitate any longer. He lurched forwards, grabbing hold of the Subconite and hoisting him up by his arms to keep him from squirming away. Both Primrose and the tall villager ducked down, watching in anticipation. After a quick sniff, and a snarl of delight, the monster bit down on the villager’s cloak and ripped it in two, tossing the cloth to the side, then bit down deeply into the Subconite’s shoulder, eliciting a harsh scream of pain from the victim.

The creature began to saw into his victim’s shoulder, ripping the shoulder open with his jaws and using his claws to further open the wound, loosening his grip when he knew the Subconite couldn’t get away. The small villager cried out in terror, feeling the foreign beast digging into him. “GET OFF PLEASE GET OFF PLEASE I-” The Subconite sobbed as it tried to plead to the shadow, without a response. It wasn’t until he heard, and felt, his shoulder make a sickening CRUNCH under the monster’s fangs that he finally realized- this  _ thing _ wasn’t listening to him. It didn’t care about him. He was  **prey** .

The former Prince pulled his head from the wound and watched intently as a blue liquid started to leak from the wound, pooling and dripping over the villager’s shoulder. It made the shadow ecstatic. That. That was it. That was  **food** . He launched himself back at the wound, trying to devour the strange substance before it evaporated away. The Subconite in his grip was starting to wither, the glowing lights of his eyes under his mask growing dim. He wasn’t screaming, having shot his voice from his shrieks of agony, now whimpering and crying for someone to help him. His friend was frozen in fear, now turned away from the grotesque scenery. Primrose wanted to help, but she just… didn’t know how. Her mind was filled with adrenaline and fear, clogged with the rushing thoughts. 

It didn’t take long for the villager to completely quiet down, only trembling and whimpering when it hurt too much. The shadow was ripping in deeper, agitated that the ooze was flowing slower than before, and was evaporating much faster. The flesh, the blood, it wasn’t nearly enough to quell his aching hunger pangs- only this blue liquid. It didn’t take very long for the Subconite to go still, slowly falling limp while the blue liquid stopped flowing completely. Moments later, a faint blue light flowed from the villager’s head, taking his mask with him. It had black tears trailing down from its eyes. It looked around briefly, before staring down at its corpse and not breaking its gaze. A small little dweller.

The other Subconite froze, staring straight into his friend’s dweller’s eyes. The dweller floated over to him, tilting its head, watching his friend break down before him.

Primrose was horrified, but quickly regained her confidence and started to walk over to the creature, tightly gripping her broom. All that was left was the corpse of the Subconite, bleeding heavily all over the forest floor, a dark shadow looming over it. The shadow was darker than any of the others in the forest, aside from it’s eerie eyes. It was hard to tell if it was even real. The blizzard started to pick up, the trees swaying to let just enough light hit Primrose’s eyes to see the face of the beast. It looked almost human. It had long claws at the end of its lanky arms, with a hefty mane of hair trailing down its shoulders and spilling down it’s back. Blood seeped down it’s jaws, alongside blue and yellow liquid. The same blood and blue liquid was splattered over its face, torso, and hands, which held tightly to its deceased prey. It’s breathing was ragged, broken. That’s when it looked at her.

Unmoving, still. It’s glare was unfeeling and cold.

She knew that face, even in its distorted state.

Prince Luke of Subcon.

Primrose stopped in her tracks. “P… Pr… Prince…?”

The man she’d seen just days before, happily chatting with her and buying flowers from her for his lover, was now a horrific and shadowy figure, having just gored a villager to death with his  _ mouth _ . He stood up, letting the body roll off of him, revealing fancy clothing, soiled and in tatters, covered by the same shadowy purple that he was. His eyes were locked on her, watching her every movement. He started to make a raspy cackle- a familiar sound to the Prince’s notorious bellow.

There was no doubt in Primrose’s mind. Her Prince- no, her _ friend _ \- had turned into a  **monster** .

Primrose tensed up. “By the stars… what… what happened to you…?”

The Prince stared at her, no focus to be found in his gaze. Prince Luke had wonderful gold eyes, which many people marveled at when compared to his family’s dull brown. Those lights were replaced by these horrid suns, staring her down with no hint of direction. Just a blank, unwavering stare.

His hair had grown so long she could have mistaken it for a lion’s mane. Prince Luke always kept his hair just above shoulder length- but this version of him had hair running down his back and spilling over his shoulders, hiding parts of his face. As she kept inspecting him, she found his clothes looked rather loose, and his arms looked rather thin.

The creature’s strange growls, which sounded like choking noises to an extent, snapped Primrose out of her train of thought. He’d finally gotten a steady footing, and was starting to amble closer to Primrose, hunched over to try to support his own weight. The way he walked was akin to that of a zombie in a horror-movie, maybe with a bit more stability and posture. The Prince couldn’t think of anything but his own hunger. Even so, Primrose shuddered at what she could have sworn she heard him say.

“ **Prrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrimmmm.... Rrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrossssse…** ” 

Primrose felt her back send chills, up and down. It knew her name.  _ He _ knew her name. She held the broom a little tighter, holding it up a bit more. Just in case. But… she was hesitant. She didn’t want to hurt the creature, if it really was Prince Luke. But the creature kept fumbling towards her, now baring his fangs and raising his claws. Prince Luke was overwhelmed by his senses and feelings. Pain. Anger. Cold. So, so very cold… but when he fed, and ate the blue liquid… those feelings… the cold… it went away. More. He wanted more. He  _ needed _ more.

Another growl fled his lips, this time a bit clearer. “ **Prrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrim… Rrrrrrrrrrrrrrooossssssssssssssssssse.** ” Primrose raised her broom and squeaked in fear. She had to fight back. Anything, to protect herself.

But that gesture made the monster freeze. A moment of clarity? A hesitation to fight? Whatever it was, it stopped the creature for a moment. The Prince shrunk back, backing down onto all fours like an animal. He made a soft hiss, yellow liquid spitting out in a few droplets. The blue substance was completely gone, having fully evaporated. He quickly turned around and ran off in the other direction, back into the dark cover of the forest- but not before clumsily slipping on a root, a small piece of clothing tearing off as he ran.

Primrose sat in silence for a moment, to collect herself, before getting up and going to investigate. She first looked at the corpse. The top half of the body was drenched in blood, and the shoulders laid in odd positions, as though perhaps the bones inside were shattered. She then saw the yellow substance that seemed to dribble from the creat- erm, Prince Luke’s mouth. Was it like saliva? It must have been. She didn’t have any other explanation for it. All she had left to look at was the shred of clothing the shadow left behind. Without a doubt, it was Luke’s.

What had happened to him? Only a few days ago, they were sitting and chatting about each other’s plans. How she wanted to get permission to expand the shop and gain funds for more exotic plants. How he’d hurried to cram for his finals, to get home early to spend time with Vanessa, wanting to bring her gifts as an apology for being away for so long (even if it really wasn’t his fault he was caught up in his studies since he decided to drop his tutor). He’d even let his secret plan slip, under the promise Primrose wouldn’t tell anyone else.

Did Vanessa say no…?

That wouldn’t explain anything, though…

It occurred to Primrose that night was about to fall. If this form of Luke was hungry for people, and he blended into the darkness so well… Primrose nearly jumped to her feet. Subconites often went for nighttime strolls, regardless of the weather. People would be in danger if they didn’t know about this. She had to _tell_ people about Luke.  
But…

She didn’t want to tell them about _Luke_. She knew that if she didn’t tell people about the event, then more people would die. But if she did, she risked putting Luke in danger. Something in her told her that Luke wasn’t gone. That something was controlling him, taking over him. Maybe it could be reversed.  
“Maybe I could hide his identity...” Primrose mumbled. “But what should I call him instead? A name that sounded like something you’d call a scary monster, something _cryptic_ …

“The… The Snatcher.” Perfect. Primrose leapt to her feet and dashed into the village, hoping she’d be fast enough to save a few lives.


	2. The Children

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A flashback to the lives of Prince Luke, Queen Vanessa, and Primrose as young children, showing how the past built the present.

Luke wiped flooding tears from his eyes as he bolted across the bridge. He only had a vague idea of where he was going, but he ran onwards with no intent of stopping. The forest around him loomed overhead, the creatures within seemingly watching him in eerie silence. The forest itself seemed to generate a strange darkness, and the stories Luke had heard of were enough to scare him into staying far away, even at a mere five years old. He was all alone, having gotten up early in the morning to bolt out of the door. He had awoken to the sound of his father yelling and an awful cracking noise, and, out of sheer, thoughtless fear, sprang out of bed, into proper clothes, and ran out the door, trying to get as far away from his home as possible.

Luke himself didn’t quite know why he ran. In all honesty, he wanted to turn back and go home. He’d confused himself into running away, but he felt as though if he turned back now, he’d be met with his father’s anger. So, he kept running.

Finally, after what seemed like endlessly running for forever, Luke saw the faint light from the village in the early morning dawn. He quickly scampered into the village before making a mad dash to the first alley he saw. Luke was very young, but he was smart enough to know that, should he be caught, he’d land right back to his parents, who would NOT be happy. He knew his family loved him, but he hated disappointing his father. If he did, surely he’d get belted.

Luke ducked down behind some boxes, staying as quiet as he could aside from his exhausted pants. He lost count of how long he stayed behind the boxes, fumbling around and drawing in the dirt with his finger, or petting a street cat when it walked by. He felt awfully hungry, having not been able to eat anything before he left. The Sun had well breached the high treeline. Luke felt his head begin to pound against his skull, nearly as much as his stomach groaned.

The plaza was rather quiet, and Luke didn’t pay it much attention- that is, until he heard the sound of someone getting rather close to his hiding spot, to which he peered out from behind his wall of boxes. There, he saw a young girl with red hair and freckles playing in the grass by one of the houses, tending to a few small wildflowers- or at least, pretending to. But his attention to the girl wasn’t held for very long. Luke felt his head thumping rhythmically, and pressed a hand against it in a feeble attempt to soothe the discomfort. His stomach did flips, and he moved his other hand against it too. Luke groaned weakly and curled into a ball, feeling rather ill; however, it wasn’t from an illness, but rather from the rush of adrenaline, paired with a lack of energy.

The girl must have heard because when he looked over at her again, she was looking over in his direction. Luke didn’t think much of it though, instead whimpered pitifully and curled up tighter. 

The girl caught the sight of yellow pants and purple boots and, out of curiosity and concern, got up to investigate the sound. When she looked behind the boxes, she was rather surprised to see a young boy, around her age, curled up in the dirt. He was taller and thinner than she was, dressed in very formal-looking clothes. He leaned against a few small boxes, grunting in discomfort every so often. Tilting her head, she tried to approach the kid.

“Hello?” The girl spoke softly. The quiet noise was enough to make Luke shriek in fear, his voice reaching several octaves higher than his normal five-year-old-voice would normally reach. He practically jumped out of his skin before curling back in on himself, using his arms as a shield. The girl was taken aback, squeaking in surprise herself. 

“P-please,” Luke croaked, “don’t t-take me b-ba- me back.” He wrapped his arms around his knees, his somewhat long hair covering his face.

“T… take you back…?” The young girl questioned his words. “Take you back where?”

“N-NO!” Luke screeched, kicking himself back and up against the wall of the alley, tears starting to pool and overflow from his eyes.

The girl felt awful, seeing this boy act this way. “I’m not gonna take you anywhere.”

Luke slowly looked back up at her, shaking softly. His leggings and coat were coated in dirt, but he couldn’t care less- he was a child.

“P-promise?”

She nodded happily. “Promise!”

The girl smiled at him, trying to lift his mood. Luke sat up and wiped the tears off his face, still trembling a bit. He got to his feet, but sat down rather quickly. His head and stomach did flips, and it was too much for a little five year old to take. “Mmm… owie…”

Primrose tilted her head, not knowing what was going on. Luke was so hungry- he rather desperately wanted something to eat. But he was raised that bluebloods don’t beg. The last time he begged for food, his father-

A sudden surge of nausea hit Luke, upfront and unexpected. He wasn’t familiar with this feeling, the dazed and disconnected feeling from his own head, his stomach pulsing unforgivingly, his body trembling on its own. Had he made himself so hungry he’d gotten sick? Had he caught something from the village? He was so lost in thought, he forgot all about the girl standing right in front of him. 

“Is something wrong?” The girl in front of him asked, a bit worried.

Luke tried to shake his head ‘no’, only to double down on himself from hunger. He knew the girl would tell he was lying, and he quickly came clean, though his voice was barely audible. “H… hungry…”

The girl tilted her head. “You said you’re hungry?” Luke nodded. “I could run home and get you a snack if you’d like!”

Luke felt his skin shudder at the thought of begging. He was told to NEVER beg. He’d been punished for begging before. Would he be punished again, if he begged for food from this girl? Before he knew it, Luke was nodding his head ‘yes’.

The child nodded before turning around and heading back to her house. Luke slunk back into his spot, hoping no one would see him. He couldn’t bear the thought of going home to his parents, who were surely angry…

When the girl returned, she handed Luke an apple, holding another for herself. He smiled like a dork at the sight of the fruit, the light hitting off his eyes and showing off his brilliant yellow eyes. Luke quickly snatched the apple out of the girl’s hand, before greedily taking a bite- then remembered just how rude that action was. With a quiet noise, he threw his head down with nearly enough force to give himself whiplash. “I’m sorry! I-I-I-”

“Sorry for what?” Primrose asked in between bites.

Luke looked up in fearful confusion. “I-I snatched it- snatched it from your hands- without asking or waiting- I-I’m sorry-”

“No, it’s okay! There’s no need to wait.” She smiled, waving away his concern over manners.

Luke gave her a strange expression, then looked back at the apple. He curled into his corner and took a bite. It tasted just heavenly, even if it was a plain old apple. He made quick work of it, before placing it in a dumpster on the other side of the alley. He looked back at the girl, hands folded behind him, and lowered his head a little. “Th-thank you, miss.”

Luke was nervously tapping his foot and fiddling with his fingers, trying to remember what he was forgetting- then it hit him. “W… what’s your n-name, miss?”

The girl smiled warmly. “I’m Primrose.”

Luke returned the smile before straightening himself out. “My name’s Luke. It- It’s a pleasure to me- to meet you.” He spoke word for word what his mother had told him to say when introducing himself. After the introduction, Luke struck his hand out to Primrose for a handshake.

Happily taking his hand, Primrose replied, “Nice to meet you, Luke!”

Luke grinned a little, then brushed the dirt off his tunic and pants. He didn’t know what to say, really. There weren’t very many children in the noble rankings. He felt lucky that Primrose happened to be nice.

“Hey,” Primrose began, “do you wanna play a game?”

He glanced up at the offer, his face a mix of confusion and joy. No one had asked him if they wanted to play a game before- but at the same time, he didn’t know any games. He did what he was told to do or to practice, like playing his viola or cello, or the piano, or watch people fence so he would learn how to fence when he was older. Whatever time he had leftover from practicing or chores was when he would find his stack of papers and scribble all over them.

“Um… o… ok, what game?”

“Oh, we could play tag, or chase… or we could play with a ball…” Primrose began to list off all the different outdoor games she could think of. Luke lifted a finger and opened his mouth, as though about to ask a question, but dropped it and slammed his mouth shut. Taking notice, Primrose tilted her head.

Luke took a little deep breath, then looked at Primrose in the eyes. “I’ve never played tag… h-how do you… play?”

“Oh, it’s easy!” Primrose giggled. “All you have to do is run away from the person who’s ‘it’ and if you’re ‘it’ you gotta tag anyone who isn’t ‘it’!”

Luke’s expression eased a bit. “Really?”

Primrose nodded- then booped Luke’s nose. “You’re it!” She then quickly scampered off, giggling gleefully. Luke clasped his nose in surprise, before watching Primrose hurry off. He slowly started trotting after her, picking up the pace to run, out of the alley and into the plaza, even starting to giggle.

Luke was rather nimble, quickly catching up to Primrose and trailing just behind her. He quickly forgot his worries, caught up in having fun, as a child should. When Primrose noticed, she squeaked and tried to outrun him, but it wasn’t long before Luke tapped her on the head and sped past her, giggling loudly. Primrose tried to tap him back immediately, but was too slow and missed.

Luke was surprisingly fast for his age, but also surprisingly clumsy, tripping over the smallest of roots and face-planting right into the dirt. Primrose caught up to him, tagged his shoulder, then tried to help him up. He tried to push himself up, revealing that he’d gotten dirt on his face and a tiny cut on his cheek.

Primrose squeaked at the sight of his wound. “Y… you’re okay… right?”

Luke felt a warm sensation on his cheek, and he quickly used his sleeve to wipe the tear- and everything else- off, then took Primrose’s hand to get up. “Y… yeah…”

“PRINCE LUKE?”

Faster than either child could react, someone rushed over to Luke, grabbing the boy by both arms. Luke squealed, uncomfortable by the stranger grabbing him and holding him still, staring at his face in fear. People started to gather, and all the unwanted attention made Luke’s heart start to pound again.

“OH MY GOD, IT IS THE PRINCE!”

Primrose backed away as adults started walking past her to inspect the Prince. Luke tried to call out to her, but he wasn’t sure he’d heard her as some of the people started to escort him back to the manor.

Primrose heard, and tried to call back, but Luke couldn’t hear over the frantic words of the adults around him. Luke tried to talk to them, but they didn’t listen as they pushed him back home.

When the manor was in sight, Luke felt his heart freeze. His body began to tremble, remembering the trouble he’d surely be in. The group passed a set of guards at the entrance to their mansion, who, after hearing the group’s explanation, grabbed either of Luke’s arms and walked him back to the mansion. Luke winced, their grip far too tight. A single adult trailed behind the guards, intending to tell the nobles what she’d seen happen.

The mansion came into full view, and one could see two adults outside the front entrance- a tall man in a rather expensive-looking suit, and a woman in a long but simple dress. The two were talking to one another, both looking rather concerned. The woman was pacing a bit, while the man looked out off the porch and down the path, having noticed the guard making his way to the mansion. Luke looked ahead as well, and completely froze up when he made eye contact with the man.

It was his father.

He was practically glaring at him.

Luke was covered in dirt, with his cut having stopped bleeding- though it was still quite red. His face paled in fear, but the guards didn’t notice or care as they escorted their young Prince back to the mansion. The woman behind him made her presence known, picking up the pace to outrun the guards and get to the nobleman, quickly explaining how she’d seen the child playing with another in the plaza and how he’d tripped and gotten a bit hurt. The guards set Luke by his mother before nodding and returning to post. 

Luke looked up at his mother, hoping she’d be a bit more forgiving than his father. She wasn’t quite as strict as her husband, but she wasn’t rather pleased her son had gone off on his own either. Luke caught a glance from his father, stern and disapproving. The eye contact alone made Luke’s knees tremble. Luke felt a nudge from his mother, and he slowly stepped towards his father.

The woman finished explaining what she’d seen, and Luke’s father thanked her dearly, sending her off with a small grin. It didn’t last long.

Luke reached for his father’s hand, desperate for any reassurance at all. His father didn’t take his hand, though his mother, who had stepped closer behind him, took it instead. 

“... f… father… r..?” Luke squeaked, forcing himself to keep his eyes on his father.

The tall man turned, looming over Luke like a storm cloud. “What were you thinking?!”

Luke whined and hid himself behind his mother. “I… I-I-” he stuttered.

"Do you realize how dangerous it is out there? How worried your mother and I were? You're lucky you didn’t get hurt by more than just a scratch and you're extra lucky some  _ peasant _ child found you.” His father continued, spitting out the word ‘peasant’ like it was a foul piece of meat.

Luke took a shaky step back, nearly falling over, had it not been for his mother’s tight grip on his hand. “I-I-I’m sorry-” Luke quickly bowed his head, hearing his father huff.

The man silently turned and walked inside, with Luke’s mother following close behind with Luke in hand. He held his head low, quiet and avoided looking anyone in the eyes. His mother quietly shut the door behind them both, guiding Luke to where his father went. 

When Luke walked in, he heard the threatening CRACK faster than he saw the belt.

  
  


\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

  
  


Luke trailed behind his father nervously, his tiny hand wrapped in his father’s firm but gentle grasp. Not that he’d stray too far from it, anyways. His father wore a warm smile tonight. Luke had been behaving very well in the last few weeks, and he had no reason to be harsh on him. Luke hoped his father would stay in such a good mood, though. He had a track record of coming home from parties angry. Those were rough nights.

Luke had been dragged along to a party with his parents, held by the royals for the blueblood. He’d much rather stay at home and draw, but he didn’t have much of a say in the matter. He looked around the sea of adults, trying to not look anyone directly in the eye, while staying glued to his father’s side. His mother had gone off to gossip with other noblewomen, leaving the two by themselves. Luke’s father would try to nudge him, to try to get him to be more social, but if Luke wasn’t ready for talking, he knew he couldn’t force it on him.

He looked around at the big crowd, intimidated by the sheer number of people he saw. Luke had never been to a party with so many strangers, and there wasn’t a kid his age in sight. While his mother was interested in drinks and food and gossip, Luke’s father was more into business discussion- though even he had a grown-up drink in his free hand. 

After a bit of walking around, Luke’s father slowly loosened his grip on Luke’s hand, becoming more and more distracted by drinks and chat. Neither seemed to notice, that is, until Luke realized his father had walked away, and was nowhere in sight. The lack of someone familiar to cling to caused Luke to begin to panic, fearful of the strange people around him. He looked around, his breathing speeding up and shallowing, feeling as though a hundred eyes were all pointed at him, judging him-

Luke yelped as he backed into someone, turning in fright, shaking as he looked at the person he’d bumped into. The one he’d bumped into squeaked and turned around to see who’d bumped her.

Luke gasped and bowed his head as fast as he could. “P-pr-princess! I’m so- so sorry! Please, for- forgive me!”

Princess Vanessa waved his apologies away. “O-oh, it’s okay! It’s kinda crowded in here, huh? Don’t worry about it.”

The young noble looked up, still trembling in front of the Princess. He couldn’t think of anything to say, so he instead stayed very quiet. But, neither did Vanessa, so she stayed quiet too. Luke started to stutter, trying to break the silence- but he was talking to the future QUEEN of Subcon, how could he think of anything to say to her?

Vanessa patiently waited for Luke to find his words, perking up when he seemed to have found them.

“What I- I mean to- what I mean to say is-”

Luke sharply inhaled, then sighed, trying to gather a sliver of confidence in his tone. He pushed a hand out to her, grinning openly.

“My name’s Luke.”

“I’m Vanessa,” she smiled, “but you probably already knew that.” She took his hand in both of hers and shook it softly.

Luke gave a half-hearted chuckle, retreating his hand back to his side quickly. “M-my apologies, Your Highness.”

“Nothing to apologize for.” She replied.

Luke rubbed the back of his head nervously, before coughing into his fist. “Um… I lost my dad, he let go of my hand and I can’t find him.”

“Oh?” Vanessa said. “Perhaps I could help!”

“R-really?” Luke perked up. “B-but, Princess- I can’t ask you for help, you’re royalty!”

“Just because I’m royalty doesn’t mean I can’t help.” Vanessa grabbed his hand firmly, guiding him back into the crowd. She made sure that she didn’t lose her grip on Luke’s hand, constantly mentally checking that his warm hand was still in hers. “What does he look like?”

“Um… he’s really tall… he’s got greying-brown hair, and a moustache…” Luke didn’t quite know how to explain it to Vanessa, even if it was his own father.

“How about what he’s wearing?” Vanessa chirped as she glanced at people in the crowd.

‘I think… I think he’s wearing a red suit… and purple-black pants.”

Vanessa nodded. Most people were wearing black and white suits, which meant it should be a bit easy to pick out a red suit. Suddenly, Vanessa paused, and Luke bumped into her again, nearly toppling them over. She hushed Luke’s profuse apologies, still looking around. Luke started to feel a bit hopeless…

“There!”

Vanessa suddenly yanked on his hand, pulling him through the crowd once more. When he finally made it through the crowd, Vanessa slowed down, walking up to a tall man that wore exactly what Luke had described. Luke gasped, a bit tired from running across the room.

“Excuse me, sir?” Vanessa tapped the man’s elbow. The man turned and looked down at her, a cheery and unusually long smile draped along his face. He was holding a wine glass, filled to the brim with alcohol. He wobbled, even in place, staring the children down.

“Why, hello Princess.” The man neglected to react to Vanessa with proper manners, Luke noted. But that was expected, seeing as how intoxicated his father had gotten. “Ah, Luke! I thought I told you not to go off on your own.” He seemed to be trying to scold his son, but his cheery tone and expression didn’t falter as he did so. He took Luke’s hand in his own, his loose grip leading Luke back to his side. “Thank you, Princess.”

Luke looked back at Vanessa with a confused, yet amused face. Vanessa seemed to snicker as well, hiding it behind her gloved hand. Keeping his hand close, he waved goodbye at Vanessa.

“It was a pleasure to meet you, Luke.” Vanessa spoke softly as Luke’s father turned and walked in a random direction, likely towards more drinks. Luke couldn’t help but keep smiling, feeling as though he finally had found a friend.

  
  


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It was a warm Summer day, with just the perfect temperature for playing outside. Primrose had been sitting under a tree and admiring the plants she’d helped her mother grow out from afar, seeing how well they brightened the atmosphere around them. She found that she really loved tending to plants and growing fruit, just like her mother had been when she was Primrose’s age. Her mother even said that if she still wanted to care for plants when she was older, perhaps she could take over the floristry business her parents had started. It surely would help them, seeing as how her mother had become so busy with caring for Sage, her newly adopted baby brother.

Sometime while sitting under the oak tree, she’d started to nod off, lulled into dreamless sleep by the sounds of birds chirping and the warmth of the sun, even in the shade.

When she’d awoken, she saw a familiar face, sitting by the fountain, gazing at the ripping water. She could see something in his arms, but couldn’t tell what it was. Interested, Primrose stood up from her spot, stretched, and skipped over to the fountain.

“Luke!” Primrose waved, catching the attention of the young Prince who sat at the fountain. He perked up at her voice, and smiled widely when he caught her eye. Primrose skidded to a stop, sitting down in the grass that surrounded the fountain.

“Good morning, Prim.” Luke grinned, a hand wrapped tightly around what seemed to be a dark green and yellow strap around his torso and waist.

Primrose raised a glare to Luke, unimpressed. “Only my family gets to call me that and you know it.” Primrose’s face softened when she saw Luke chuckle and look back in the fountain, but she looked away too soon to see his expression harden a bit. “And it’s still morning?”

“Yeah, it’s only maybe ten ‘til ten.” Luke kept his eyes firmly on his reflection. “Or at least, last time I checked, it was. It may be a bit past ten now.”

“Oh, I thought it was the afternoon.” Primrose had an idea, smirking devilishly. While Luke was distracted, Primrose stuck her hand into the freezing water of the fountain. Making sure she’d gotten her hand cold and wet, she snuck behind him- and slapped the back of his neck with a wet palm.

Luke shrieked several octaves higher than his own voice, his body locking up from the cold feeling- only to lose balance and fall straight into the chilly water. Primrose was too busy bawling with laughter to notice that Luke had let something go just before he tumbled in.

Primrose rolled onto her back with laughter, holding her head and cackling at her cruel prank. When she finally gathered the strength to open her eyes, she was greeted with a faceful of scales and sharp yellow eyes. This time, it was Primrose’s turn to scream, quickly rolling back up on her feet and scrambling back and behind the fountain, nearly falling in herself.

Luke practically pulled himself out of the fountain, trembling and shivering in his now drenched coat and high boots. His hair flopped downwards, covering his eyes and obscuring a bit of his vision. “Bo! Bo, come here!”

Obediently, the serpentine creature slithered over to Luke, curling around his hand and allowing Luke to hold him up to his face. Using his other hand to wipe the soaked hair from his eyes, Luke sighed with relief, then giggled. “I was worried you got in the cold water! That wouldn’t have been good.” He patted the top of the constrictor’s head, earning a tongue-flick on his cheek. Only then did Luke notice Primrose, shaking in her boots with fear at the sight of Bo.

“What’s wrong, Prim... rose?” Luke caught himself halfway through speaking, but Primrose hardly even noticed. Luke followed her gaze right to Bo’s head.

“It- it’s a- ‘s a- it- it’s a-” Primrose could hardly choke out a complete sentence, frozen in fear of the large reptile coiling around Luke, and watching her friend act as if it was no big deal. She was QUITE certain that serpents like that could only be found within the forest- somewhere Luke was absolutely forbidden to go into. He’d told her that years ago after they first met, that he was only allowed around the mansion and the village- when he asked.

Yet here he was, stroking the beast as though it were nothing more than a cute puppy. “A snake?” Luke finished, tilting his head to the side, oblivious to why Primrose would be scared of Bo. He was a sweetheart, and would never bite without reason, much less even bare his fangs. Seeing Primrose scuttle backwards when he mentioned the words finally brought him to the realization.

“You’re scared of snakes?”

Primrose gulped, eyes locked on the creature that watched her with interest.

A devious grin stretched out on Luke’s face. Primrose quickly read his mind.

“Luke, don’t you dare.”

Without hesitation, Luke sprang out into a sprint, holding Bo in front of him, heading straight for Primrose. Squealing, Primrose hopped up and started sprinting as well, desperate to avoid the creature in Luke’s possession. She knew Luke was much more agile than she was and that he would catch up in no time, but fear made her faster, and they were just about even in speed.

“Come on, he won’t bite!” Luke giggled, taking in the satisfaction of revenge. Luke continued to playfully tease Primrose, trying to convince her to stop and give Bo a chance. Instead, both children ran mindlessly around the plaza, not realizing when they started to run into the deep woods.

“See, look how cute Bo is!”

“Luke, please, no more!” Primrose sharply turned from a tree, and Luke did the same, following in her footsteps in hopes that she would stumbled and he could catch up. Instead, Primrose swiftly shoved Luke away, having had enough of his teasing and chasing. Only, she’d forgotten one crucial detail.

Luke was a major klutz.

Stumbling backwards, and holding Bo tightly to his chest, Luke lost his footing and slipped on the moist grass… right down a massive drop. Primrose quickly noticed and tried to grab Luke’s hand, but just barely missed and swiped at the air instead, watching Luke drop down into the abyss of bushes and foliage under the drop. All the while, all Primrose could hear was Luke’s screams for her to help him- but all went silent when she heard the bushes snap under her weight and he disappeared into the plants.

After recovering from the shock of watching the Prince take a tumble down the hill, Primrose shook herself ready and noticed a part of the dropoff that seemed less steep than the rest. With as much speed as she could muster, she hurried over and slid down the mound, tripping not once as she fumbled in the oversized brush. It was dark and hard to see, even though it was morning. But the sight of something shiny caught her eye.

The glint of Luke’s crown.

Primrose practically dove over to the source of the reflection, and, just as she’d thought, it was the Prince’s crown. And not even three feet away, she could see his outline, laying in the plants and tangled in some vines he’d snapped under his falling weight. Primrose started to approach him, but as she did, her vision became much clearer, and she stopped dead in her tracks, stunned.

It was Luke, alright. But he was curled in on himself, clutching one leg with one arm while his other limbs were strone out in positions that did not seem comfortable. His clothes were covered in dirt and stains and tears from the dirty hill and sharp vines that littered the foliage in the forest. Several thorny vines had latched around him and caught their thorns on his clothes and skin. He himself had several cuts and scrapes, marking up his face and hands. One mark on his hand looked particularly like a  _ bite _ , which worried Primrose.  _ Had Luke’s snake bitten him on the way down? _

She pushed the thought aside though, when she saw that Luke’s leg, the one he was holding, had a large hole in the pants and boot that ran down the side of his leg. The gap revealed a nasty gash all the way down his shin, luckily bleeding less than what it would appear. But his whole leg had already begun to bruise up, and Primrose had a feeling that wasn’t a good sign.

“Luke!” Primrose called out as she approached, hoping he was still conscious. She was flooded with relief when she saw his head turn in her direction, followed by a weak call to her. But just as she was about to step over to him-

_ HISSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS. _

Primrose stopped clear in her tracks. Her gaze trailed down to Luke, as she could see the dark green outline slithering up and around him, raising itself up and hissing at her. Primrose squeaked and stumbled back, backing away from the menacing serpent. He had a long and nasty cut down his back, probably from the fall… it only make Bo look all the more intimidating to her. The snake lifted itself up, curling its head back, ready to strike.

“B-bo…” Luke tried to use his free hand to calm the snake, but the bite on the back of it made it painful to move. “No…”

Primrose cowered behind her hands, peering out and expecting to see a slithering vermin making its way over to her. But instead, she saw Bo inspecting Luke, flicking his tongue over Luke’s face and wounds, as though…

...as though he was trying to see if Luke was okay.

Primrose watched in fearful silence as Bo curled around Luke’s hand, guarding his palm. Were snakes capable of emoting? Or empathizing? Primrose decided that Bo was no ordinary snake, he couldn’t have been. He was way too smart.

Primrose tried once again to approach Luke, only for Bo to perk up and hiss again, causing her to flinch back again. Primrose figured that Bo must have thought she pushed Luke on purpose, and that she was going to try to hurt him again. So, Primrose turned back to Luke a third time, this time lowering herself to the dirt and stopping when Bo started to hiss… but this time, she didn’t back away. As Bo lowered himself down and came closer, she didn’t turn away. Even when he slithered on her arm and started to sniff her out, despite her locking up and looking away, she didn’t back down. Bo took a moment, inspecting Primrose.

Apparently, he deduced Primrose as friendly, slithering off of her and coiling up on Luke, and allowing Primrose to get close. She quickly- yet carefully- made her way over, attempting to move Luke over so she could get a good look over all of his injuries. But the slightest movement seemed to pain him, when he gasped out in pain the moment she tugged on him with a bit of force. So, she stood up and crawled over to the otherside to look.

Primrose gently moved Bo off of Luke and instead next to him, though squeamishly, still utterly terrified of the serpentine creature. With Bo moved, Primrose could clearly see all the gashes and bruises that marked up Luke’s face, hands, and leg. The bruising around his leg had already gotten worse, which scared Primrose. She didn’t know what to do- she couldn’t leave Luke, who knows what was out in the forest that could hurt him, not to mention she didn’t want to leave him all alone and in pain. But she was far too scared to pick him up, for fear she could drop him and make it worse- not to mention Bo…

A gently nudge on her hand broke Primrose out of her heavy thoughts. Looking down, she saw Luke weakly forcing his injured hand into her palm, an unreadable expression littered on his face. She looked at how closely he gripped his battered leg. It was clear that it was the most painful injury he’d gotten, and it was getting worse with every growing minute. 

She quickly made her choice. Primrose first picked up Bo (though every bone in her body and neuron in her brain told her to throw the snake as far away from herself as fast as possible), letting him coil around her arms and torso until he got comfortable. Then, she leaned down, and lifted Luke off the ground. He was surprisingly light- though he wasn’t much of a feather, either. Paired with Bo, the weight was a bit much for Primrose to hold. But fueled by determination, she started to make the trek back up the hill and out of the forest.

Luke groaned and whimpered, shuddering whenever Bo or Primrose accidentally brushed over a sensitive wound. He kept trying to speak, but couldn’t find the strength to form words, so Primrose shushed him and focused on trying to carry him up the hill and not on his pitiful expression.

When she had almost reached the forest’s boundaries, Primrose could hear the sound of people once again- but she could clearly hear them calling out, ‘Luke! Prince Luke!’, which gave Primrose the last bit of determination she needed to push through. She didn’t speak a word as she stepped through the bushes and on to the paved roads, but the sounds of the leaves rustling gathered enough attention. Several people, mostly guards and servants, rushed to gather around them as Primrose sat down, laying Luke on the ground. He immediately doubled over to hold his leg, while Bo slithered off Primrose and around his owner instead, only for a guard to hoist Luke back up.

“What.” The guard looked at Primrose with eyes full of rage. “Did you do to the young Prince?”

Primrose shook her head, too exhausted to speak, hoping the guards would understand her silent response. Whether they did or not, she didn’t know, because her body slowly drifted back to the grass without her mind’s command, and her consciousness faded while she watched the guards and servants carry her friend away.

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Luke laid still in his bed, reading a book quietly. He’d been laying in bed for quite a while, hardly getting up at all. It was quite boring, but it left him with plenty of time to read his books, so he didn’t complain- out loud. It wasn’t much different than what he normally did, but maybe because he didn’t have the  _ option _ of doing anything else, it made him feel a bit more restricted. He’d been like this for a few weeks now, maybe two or three, unable to do anything but sit and read and eat.

When he’d woken up a couple of weeks before, he was sitting in a doctor’s room with a nurse, who was wrapping his leg up in ointment and bandages. According to him, he’d gotten several nasty cuts and nicks and bruises along his whole body, but his leg was worst of all, having been broken by whatever impact he’d gotten. That was when the memory of the event dawned on him, and Luke had to focus intently on keeping himself from bawling in front of the doctor. Luke could vividly remember Primrose hoisting him and Bo out of the forest, helping him when he’d been teasing her relentlessly-

He’d felt a gentle nudge his cheek, snapping Luke back to the present. Luke wiped a growing tear from his eye and greeted his pet. “Hey, Bo.” Luke stroked the top of Bo’s head, then helped the serpent slither up next to him and doze off on his sheets.

After the accident, Bo’s cut had scarred over, into a bright pink spot down his back. It was rather jarring compared to the rest of his dark green scales, but it didn’t deter Luke at all. Luke smiled, then went back to his book, intently reading to pass the time. He wasn’t paying attention to the time at all, because, next thing he knew, he’d been reading to dusk.

Closing his book with a sigh, Luke sat up and stared at his leg. It was wrapped in thick bandages, with a cast holding it all in place to heal. His arms and torso were also wrapped up, but they weren’t nearly as bad as his leg. He rubbed his cheek, wincing at the soft sting that came from the remaining injury, but he didn’t mind it much. Instead, he turned to his door, which slowly rattled as a familiar face poked out from behind.

“Vanessa.” Luke’s expression softened greatly, smiling as Vanessa returned the grin before walking in and greeting him with a hug.

“Luke, how is your leg?” Vanessa sat on the floor by his bed, urging him to lay back down despite having done so for the last few hours.

“Still a bit sore, but it’s at a point where I can ignore it now.” Luke stared at the ugly white bandages and cast, until Vanessa grabbed his hand and rubbed it softly to cheer him up. “It’s rather boring, just reading by myself up here…”

“Oh?” Vanessa perked up. “Can I do anything to help?”

“No, no.” Luke snickered, purposefully muffling his laughter for the sake of someone who could be asleep in a room nearby. He gently patted Vanessa’s hand and shook his head. “No, I’m afraid there’s not much you could really do. I do appreciate the thought, though.”

Vanessa frowned, but resigned herself to leaning against his bed and holding his hand while they talked about whatever random topic popped into their heads. She did enjoy talking with him, keeping him company and entertaining herself with something that wasn’t learning how to act like a queen from her mother. 

When Vanessa heard Luke had gotten badly hurt while he’d gone out, she found herself greatly worried and extremely upset, leaving a trail of frost behind her wherever she walked. When she finally got to see the blueblood, she’d made sure to stay by his side until he was taken to his room, making sure that they took care of him first. She was, at first, angry to hear that Luke’s friend had pushed him down the hill, but Luke was quick to quash her worry, stating it was a friendly game of chase and that neither of them were really paying attention to where they were going. Still, Vanessa wasn’t too fond of the idea of Luke going out again, and getting hurt…

Apparently, Vanessa wasn’t too keen on noticing her surroundings in deep thought either, because by the time she was done thinking, Luke was already fast asleep. She sighed and let go of his hand, staring down his reptilian pet that dozed off next to him. She shook her head, slapped a smile on her face, and left, turning the light off and closing the door as silently as she could.

Vanessa had a feeling that Luke would be asleep for quite a while. He wasn’t too keen on keeping a good sleeping schedule normally, but while he was recovering he’d began to sleep more regularly, and for longer. So, she started to think of ways to make him pleased when he did wake up. He said he was bored… maybe she could get him more books. _ Different _ books. Or perhaps new paints and canvases! Luke did love to paint. Perhaps she could even put her cooking classes to use and make him breakfast in the morning. He would love it if she brought him some bacon...

  
  


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Luke yawned as he stepped through the manor, traversing the narrow halls back to his room. He’d just gotten back from eating lunch with Primrose. Ever since the accident, him and Primrose spoke less and less- though it wasn’t because they wanted to. Luke had been restricted to his parents’ mansion once he’d finally fully recovered, not allowed to leave without the presence of one of his parents. Before he could convince them that he was fine going out by himself, Primrose had been given the task of running the florist shop, and had very little time to speak with him alongside her other tasks.

He’d missed speaking with Primrose, and enjoyed the time they did spend together. She was the only person, outside of Vanessa, that he could truly call his friend. But the accident was quite a few years ago now, and Luke was busy preparing to go abroad to pursue law school in a few weeks. He’d been starting to gather his bags and prepare clothes and supplies he would need for school, trying to get a head start in packing so he’d have more time to spend with Vanessa.

Vanessa wasn’t very... enthusiastic to learn that Luke planned to go abroad. Very recently, Vanessa’s mother had passed, leaving her as the new queen. She hoped that Luke would stay, to comfort her and in hopes that she wouldn’t be alone. But he insisted that he had to go to the school, in order to give them both a better chance at being better rulers. But his reasoning only further frustrated Vanessa, and she refused to speak with him- until he promised he would write to her every day, keeping in contact, and visiting as much as he could. When he promised her that, she flipped completely, utterly enthralled by his promises.

She wasn’t completely satisfied with his promise, however. She kept trying to bargain with him into staying, even if he was certain of his answer. She would beg, cry, yell, all in her attempt to change his mind. But he was set on his answer, reminding her of his promise every time.

He knew Vanessa had been acting a bit strange lately, but he also knew she was in a state of grieving and it was to be expected that she would act strange out of grief. He’d been by her side as much as he could, giving her plenty of comfort and care when she looked down.

Fair, she had been acting a bit more… controlling, lately, over his actions. But, she was only worried about him. Bacon isn’t all that healthy, right? She must be worried that he was eating too much of it, and thought of the issues it could cause him later. Surely, she just wanted to feel a bit of comfort in seeing him try new fashion styles, with a change in his hair- though he did prefer it at his shoulders and natural color.

Luke shook his head, dismissing the rambling. Vanessa just needed more time to heal. All the more reason to hurry on with his packing. He finally made it up to his bedroom, on the third floor of Vanessa’s manor. It wasn’t too long ago that he’d moved in with Vanessa upon both her own and his parents’, spending more time with Vanessa. Not that he’d complain, Vanessa was a wonder to be around.

Luke stepped into his room, laying back onto his bed with a sigh. He felt a bit… drained, lately. He’d been working his tail off just to balance his new responsibilities, as well as Vanessa, and school… he just wanted a bit of a break. He looked over at his animal cages and decided that his pets could help him relieve stress.

He walked over to the cages, first getting Diamond out. Luke had gotten Diamond not too long after he got Bo, and he’d grown fond of them both. While Bo was, well, a boa, Diamond was an albino python, pale as snow- aside from a grey spot on her nose that looked somewhat like a diamond. Luke admitted himself, he wasn’t all that great with names.

After admiring Diamond for a bit, he set her along his shoulders to grab Bo- only to find that he wasn’t in his cage. Luke sat, a bit puzzled and concerned. Had he forgotten to put Bo back in his cage? Looking around, he couldn’t see any sign of his beloved pet anywhere, and every minute that went by only made Luke more anxious. Not once had he ever forgotten to put Bo back in his cage, and he could have sworn that he’d done so this morning before he left!

Luke’s mind swirled with worry on where Bo could have gone. Then, it hit him. Vanessa! Perhaps Vanessa saw Bo somewhere in the manor, and she could help find him!

Luke quickly put Diamond back in her cage, giving the snake an affectionate kiss on the head before closing the lid and heading off to find Vanessa. He looked in her room, the bathroom, the nursery, and the kitchen, all without luck finding her. But finally, he found her in the library, sitting in a chair with a book in her lap, looking rather tired and emotionally run down- as she had been feeling. 

“Vanessa, dear!” Luke quickly rushed to Vanessa. “Nessie, have you seen Bo? He’s not in his cage, and I looked all around my room-” He paused when he saw just how tired Vanessa was, and, for a brief moment, debated on if messing with her now was such a good idea. She was holding one hand in another, quite tightly, fumbling with her glove- something she only did if she was extremely stressed, or hurt. But in a flash, her tired and blank expression shifted into eyes full of tears and a quivering lip.

“Oh, my Prince… I’m so sorry…” Vanessa looked down and started to tremble, which made Luke instinctively come over to hug her. “I heard a noise from your room while you were away… so I went to look and saw that your beloved pet was gone.. I looked everywhere, but one of the guards came back a bit after and- oh, Luke!” Vanessa lunged onto his shoulder, pulling him close in one arm and burying her face into his neck. Luke felt tight in his chest, worry spreading through his mind.

“It was one of the guards… he came back- he came back with this…” Vanessa turned and pulled something from beside the chair, her hand shaking as she held it up for Luke to see. A bit puzzled, Luke looked a bit closer. At the item in question.

Luke flinched back at the recognition of the object. 

In her hand, was a green belt. At first glance, it didn’t seem all too memorable. Just a green belt. It seemed rather scaly, and was a bit long- there was no mistake, it was a snakeskin belt. But Luke could tell it wasn’t just any belt. It was emerald green, with spots of lime green and even yellow. The underside of the belt was yellow too. Luke felt an awful surge of fear as he checked the midpoint of the belt

Luke felt awfully nauseous, covering mouth as to not vomit on the spot.

A bright pink scar, as long as Luke’s hand.

Bo’s snakeskin.

Luke froze, aside from trembling hands, the sound of a belt cracking familiar to his ear. That… that couldn’t be real. Surely this was some sick prank, right? An awful joke? That couldn’t be a real snakeskin belt. Maybe it was just textured and painted. Bo was sitting in another room, curled up and ready to find his master, eager to be pet.

Luke glanced over at Vanessa for some sort of humoured smile, laugh, even a wink.

All he got was Vanessa’s pity.

Vanessa set the belt down on the table, then hugged Luke even tighter.. “I’m so sorry, my Prince… it was too late by the time I saw…”

Luke placed his hand firmly on Vanessa’s shoulder, shaking uncontrollably with burning anger and sorrow. His gaze was locked on the belt, eyes starting to water. His voice was shaky but stern. “Tell me,” he growled. “The whole story.”

“Well… I was in my room, writing in my diary, when I heard an awful noise in your room. So I went to go check. But when I was up there, your window was open, Bo was gone, and your bed was all messed up… so I had the servants go and search for Bo while I fixed your bed. But it wasn’t until later when a guard entered the house and I saw him holding the… the item…”

Luke felt hot tears welling in his eyes. He moved his hand off of her shoulder, as to not hurt her with his tight grip. “Which. Guard.”

“Um… I believe his name was Reginald-” Faster than Vanessa could even believe, Luke stormed off, intent of finding ‘Reginald’. Vanessa quickly snagged the belt and trailed behind, hearing Luke call all the guards in the manor up in a line. 

With an expression of anger Vanessa had never seen him wear, Luke scanned all the nametags of every guard, finally zoning in on Reginald. He stood in front of Reginald, looking down on the short guard. The abnormal rage on the Prince’s face spoke a million words to each guard.

“You’re Reginald, correct?” Luke hissed.

“Yes, sir.” Reginald answered, avoiding eye contact.

“Did you-” Luke pointed at the belt in Vanessa’s hand- “-take that belt to be fitted out of snakeskin?”

A few servants, the ones that usually served Luke, gasped quietly. The guard stuttered, then, “Yes, yes sir.”

Luke leaned down to eye level with the guard, and spoke very softly. “Leave. Now. You’re  **fired** . I never want to see your face again.”

The guard stood in shock at the Prince, stumbling over his words. Luke, however, silenced the guard. “NOW  _ GO! _ ” He shouted at the top of his lungs, jabbing a finger at the exit, and startled the guard, as well as a few servants, with his booming voice. The guard quickly got himself in order, hurrying to grab his belongings and leave before he garnered anymore of the Prince’s wrath. The remaining staff all stood, silent and still, glancing nervously at one another. Luke’s uncharacteristic rage made everyone, even Vanessa, a little nervous.

The Prince stood, huffing as hot tears drifted down his cheek. His mind felt fuzzy, and he wasn’t thinking about controlling himself. He was only concerned with what happened to Bo.

“Everyone else. Go back to your positions. Unless you want to join him.” Luke glared at the guards, and the entire line scattered back to work, not wanting to incur his wrath any further. Vanessa stood still by the door, holding the snakeskin belt tightly. She’d never once seen Luke get so angry. Slowly, she stepped out of the doorframe and over to her Prince.

“Dear…” Vanessa placed her hand on his shoulder- only for Luke to whirl around and grip her into a tight hug, burying his face into her shoulder. She gripped the belt tighter, listening to his sobs and gasps for air. “My Prince, you should go and lay down.”

Luke nodded, pulling away from the one-sided embrace. His bangs hid his teary eyes, but Vanessa knew that he was deeply broken from his loss. Luke began to walk without her, and she trailed behind him, escorting him to his room. When he made it up to his room, he walked over to the large glass tank, lifting Diamond out of the enclosure and holding her close. He needed something to hold onto, anything. “Oh, Diamond…”

The albino python flicked her tongue out at her owner in silent mourning.

Vanessa finally stalked in, neatly folding and setting the belt down on Luke’s lampstand and walking over to his side. She clasped a hand around his waist and glanced up at him, hoping to catch his eye. Instead, his watery eyes were glued to his python, and he mindlessly left Vanessa’s grip to lay on his bed, stroking Diamond’s head miserably and muttering “Bo” to himself quietly. Vanessa felt a puff of displeasure at Luke’s reaction, but she stifled it, knowing that it wouldn’t matter in the end. 

She silently left his room, closing the door and walking away. Vanessa gripped her hand tightly, hissing as she stepped down the stairs and into her room. She slipped her glove off, rubbing the bandages that covered her wounds. She sat down at her desk, brushing the hair out of her eyes and pulling it behind her shoulders, then fumbling to open her diary and ink her pen.

_ ‘Dear diary… today I did something I’m not very proud of, but it had to be done. My Prince loved his dear pet so much… so much more than he loved me. I’ve known him for longer, and yet he would care for his vermin over spending time with me! So… I snuck into his room and killed the dirty animal with one of my Prince’s books. It was a book he didn’t care for, so I threw it into the fireplace. But the nasty thing bit me! I told a guard to go take the skin to be fitted into a belt while I cleaned up, saying the snake was wild and broke into the room. My Prince was so very upset… so I pinned the blame on the guard. But maybe, if he thinks his guards can’t care for his beasts, he won’t leave?’ _

  
  


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Primrose sighed as she sat down, finally taking a break from trimming all the flora in her shop. It took a while to do, even with Sage eagerly helping. It was rather laborious, but the payoff of seeing her store look so clean was enough for her. She leaned back, snatching a set of papers off a nearby desk and fanning herself with them, feeling a bit of a sweat from the Summer sun. 

It was tiresome, keeping up with all the tasks in the shop with only Sage to help. Her mother moved out of the village after her father passed, but Primrose insisted on staying. She loved her home, her friends, her floristry. She couldn’t bear to leave it all. So, with Sage sticking to her side, they stayed in Subcon, tending to the floristry business her mother left behind for them.

Primrose couldn’t help but groan a bit when she heard a knock on her counter. She forced herself up, stretching and adjusting her apron before going up to the customer.

“Hello there, how may I help-” Primrose stopped in silence when her eyes met with Luke’s, a bit shocked by the appearance of Subcon’s Prince. “Luke! I thought you off at law school?”

“Yes, well,” Luke rubbed the back of his head. “I finished my classes a bit early, so I hurried back to see Vanessa as soon as I could. I know it’s been rough for her without me, so I wanted to spend a little more time with her during the break.”

Primrose beamed. “How have classes been?”

“Okay.”

Primrose inspected Luke a bit more, a bit taken aback. She noticed he’d started getting bags under his eyes, his hair wasn’t as neatly combed as it always was (though it surely wasn’t messy), and his clothes had a few wrinkles, as though they were thrown somewhere rather than hung up.

“Lu… are you feeling alright? You look a bit… well, miserable.”

“Oh, no, no, no, I’m quite alright.” Luke grinned and waved his hands dismissively. “No, I just, well… I had to study quite a bit, so I might have had a couple late night coffees here and there… and last night, I forgot I hand my laundry done, and it all wrinkled without time to redry it.”

Primrose nodded, unconvinced. Luke wasn’t one to crack under the pressure of tests or preparation. In fact, if anything, he prepared and studied ahead of time. But she also knew Luke hated being put on the spot, so she kept quiet- for now.

“So, you came back early for the Queen?” Primrose leaned on one hand.

Luke nodded. “Yes, I did. She’s told me about how lonely she’s gotten in without me, and I thought coming back and giving her some gifts could help ease her loneliness.”

“Gifts?” Primrose questioned. “Like.. flowers?”

“Precisely, Prim!” Luke smiled, ignoring Primrose’s brief look of dismay. “She does love flowers, and you’re the best florist in the whole of Subcon!”

“Quit jesting.” Primrose jokingly pushed Luke’s shoulder, earning a stifled chuckle from the Prince. She couldn’t help but notice that Luke seemed a bit… thinner. When she pushed his shoulder jokingly, he felt a bit… thin. Primrose shook the thought away. Those were questions for another time. She could ask him why later. “Alright… what kind of flowers does she like?”

“Hmmm. she does love roses.” Luke hummed, inspecting the flowers in the shop. Primrose stepped back from the counter and walked right over to the thorned flowers, plucking several out and into a bouquet with fancy designs.

“Personally, I prefer hibiscus. They come in so many different colors… they’re just so pretty.” Primrose smiled, gathering a few extra supplies for Luke- some plant nutrients to keep the roses alive longer. “How about you?”

“Oh… I do lov- I do enjoy orchids.” Luke tapped at the counter mindlessly, taking his time looking at all the flowers. Primrose finally returned to the counter, placing the bouquet on the desk. “How much?”

“On the house, Luke.”

“No, no no no. How much?”

“Luke-”

Primrose stopped when Luke pursed his lips and tapped at the counter a bit faster. “Please Primrose, how much for the flowers.”

Primrose paused, a bit taken back by his strange behavior. Luke caught onto himself and straightened his posture back, fixing his cravat and expression.

“I’m sorry, Prim. Please- how much for the roses?”

Primrose fumbled her hands together. “Um… ten.”

Luke pulled a gold coin from his pocket- well more than the needed price. “Here, keep the leftover.”

“Luke, I can’t-”

“Please, Prim.” Luke caught her eye, and she couldn’t find the heart to argue with him. Not while he looked so miserable.

Primrose sighed and snagged the coin, pausing when Luke reached for her hand and held it still. He looked up at her and smiled, a wide and genuine smile. Primrose couldn’t help but smile back, giggling a little. But as they chuckled-

A quiet gasp erupted from a nearby alley. Luke swiftly turned around, seeing a flash of green disappear into the shadows. “Nessie!” Luke called, immediately knowing who it was. He let go of Primrose, snatched the bouquet, and dashed off after the Queen, into the shadows as well. Primrose stood back, a bit tired from talking and a bit worried over the Queen.  _ Was she alright? Why did she run? _

Primrose shook her head and went to the entrance to lock the door and close up. She was getting a bit of a headache, and thought it would be a good idea to close the shop a bit early. After all, what was the harm?


	3. The Snatcher

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Its been days since the Snatcher first appeared, and people have already begun dying at its claws. Sage insists on helping, while Primrose stumbles upon a shocking scene.

Primrose shuffled under her covers, finally waking up from her long sleep. The light had peaked through her blinds in such a way to land directly on her eyes, peeving her into consciousness. She’d started going to sleep early now, before dusk cracked, and refused to get out of bed until dawn faded into the day. But as she woke up, her chest was immediately filled with dread. Every night since his first sighting, she’d warned as many people as she could before night completely fell, then went to her store to make sure Sage was safe. She’d write any notes she had on the shadow, where he was, what he did, and then promptly went to bed, trying to ignore the swirling thoughts in her head.

A few days had passed since Primrose had found the missing Prince, turned into a carnivorous shadow-man. When she ran to tell people about ‘The Snatcher’, as she called it, many people believed her and turned around after also seeing the tall Subconite, with a strange dweller by his side. Normally only children could see dwellers, and they couldn’t be touched unless they possessed something. Not this dweller. This one was seen by children and adults alike, and could be touched and could shove things around. Not to mention this one’s mask was different. It had black tear streaks coming from the eyes, dripping down its face to the rim.

But what scared her were the people who kept walking, not believing her and going on with their walk. She was scared that they-

Someone knocked on her door. It could only be one person, the only other person allowed into the backrooms, which were for employee’s only.  
“Prim? Are you up yet?” A familiar voice rang out, quiet and low.

Sighing, Primrose responded. “Yeah, Sage, I’m up.”

Primrose stretched as she sat up in her bed, eyes falling right onto her desk. A stack of papers on the desk by Primrose’s bed sat in a neat pile. Primrose had never heard of a curse or condition that transformed people into something like Luke. It was unheard of. So, she began to take notes. Notes on whatever she could tell about his behavior, feeding patterns, everything. Notes on the bodies, notes on possible footprints, anything. Anything that could help her to help her friend, and save people’s lives.

“I know it’s early morning, but somehow the Subconite’s already compiled a count.” Sage leaned against her door, holding the small piece of paper with numbers and descriptors scribbled on it. Primrose insisted he stay safe in the shoppe, at least until they had a better understanding of the threat at hand. That didn’t stop him from sneaking out to help count and look over the younger children while the older villagers went to count.

Prim looked down, pushing her face into the blanket and going quiet for a moment. She hated the counts… but she had to know. So that she could keep others from the same fate.

“Ok.”

Sage shuffled his fingers for a moment, then he sighed. “There were three bodies, one being stripped of a decent amount of… flesh. Two led me to where they supposedly got attacked, but there was nothing there but ripped clothes.” His voice cracked as he spoke, his head full of dreaded thoughts about what could have happened to the other two.

Primrose felt her throat lock up.  _ Three _ .  _ Three more people _ were dead. In the last few days, the numbers were very low, only one per night, if any at all. In the last three nights, there weren’t any deaths. But now there were three gone. 

“Maybe if we make a search party, we could find where the monster hides during the day, and we could kill it before it kills anymore of-”

“No, I… I’m sure there’s another way.” Primrose fiddled with her thumbs. “I’m sure we can calm it down.”

“What do you mean? That- that  _ thing _ is a heathen! You say this every time, now. It’s not a human. Let’s just kill it and be rid of it.” Sage snapped. “It’s killed at least three people in a single night- and that’s only to our knowledge. There could be more fatalities we don’t know about. It would be best to send a hunting party out and kill the damn thing. That thing is going to kill us all if we don’t do something-”

Primrose whined, sitting up and looking at the window. Sage heard her whine and went quiet again.

“Sorry, I-”

“It’s okay.”

“Can I come in?”

Primrose paused. “Okay.”

Sage opened the door, finding her sitting on her bed. He sat down next to her, trying to look her in the eyes. “Prim, are you okay?”

Primrose smiled at him and held his hand. “Yeah, I’m fine. Just… stressed.”

Sage sighed and laid down on her covers. “Me, too.”

Primrose relaxed a bit, holding onto a pillow. The snowstorm had calmed down over the past few days. Now it was just a mild flurry. It actually was rather beautiful. She had a store to run, though.

  
  


Primrose started to gather what she needed to get to work, snatching a breakfast bar and her apron in a hurry. She’d woken up a bit late, and had to hurry to open the store on time. Stuffing the bar in her mouth and throwing her apron on her shoulders, she popped into Sage’s room to check in on him, making sure he was getting ready to help.

“Sage, you were sure to grab the orchid see-” Primrose stood dead in her tracks, gazing at Sage, who, in turn, gazed right back at her.

He was holding one of the broom’s Primrose kept on hand, the wooden tip sharpened into a long point. He was dressed in a shorter cloak, with a belt that could hold who knows what. He had a flashlight in his other hand, the one with extra batteries Primrose kept in case of an outage.

“Where,” Primrose hissed, “are you going?”

“I-” Sage looked around the room, then sighed defeatedly. “I was going to go meet up with the other villagers and try to hunt the Snatcher down.”

Primrose sighed and shook her head. “Sage, I told you, you _ can’t  _ go out and try to kill it! It’s not safe for you right now. If this thing can take down several grown adults in a single night, just think of what it’ll do to you.”

“I just…” Sage sighed and sat down, tossing the sharpened broom and flashlight to the side. “I hate seeing you stressed like this. No one feels safe leaving their houses, much less the village borders. You’re stressed out beyond belief, as well as people’s parents. No one has seen her majesty or the Prince in days, as well as this strange winter and the arrival of this… monster.”

Primrose flinched at hearing Sage call Luke a ‘monster’. She sat down next to Sage, putting her arm around his shoulder.

“Listen, Sage.” Primrose looked down, seeing Sage look back up at her with worried eyes. “I know you want to help, and I know you’re worried about me and the other villagers. But I don’t want you to risk your life trying to kill something we don’t know how to handle. It might not need to be killed, maybe it needs to be tamed, or calmed.

“The point is, is that I don’t want you to throw your safety out the window when we don’t know how to handle this situation. For now, though, I really need your help in the shoppe.”

Sage looked down at his feet, then leaned into Primrose’s arms.

“I’m sorry, Prim.”

“No, no, it’s okay, Sage.” Primrose pulled him into a tight hug. “You’re just really protective, that’s all.”

Sage’s mood lifted a bit, loosening his grip on Primrose.

“Now come on and get changed,” Primrose smirked, “we’re running a bit late.”

  
  


Primrose was outside, sweeping snow off the porch of her store. Three dead… maybe more… She felt a chill down her spine, though she convinced herself it was the icy air. If The Snat- er, if Luke was really out there, what was he doing? She’d asked Sage about the blue liquid she’d seen, and he told her it was called soul. It was sort of like blood, and it helped to heal severe wounds and heal ailments and extend life. Luke had targeted the blue substance over the blood or the innards of his victim… Did that make him some sort of special vampire? Why was he like this now?

She saw something out in the forest, moving strangely. She quickly hid behind one of the small trees by the store entrance and looked closely. A human-like, purple shadow was pacing around, looking at the forest.

Luke was walking around the edge of the forest, sensing for soul. He wanted to go out into the village, but the light was too bright for his eyes, and it hurt him. Even the large meal he’d had over the night wasn’t enough to sate his hunger. He was still cold, and pained. Only the soul soothed the feelings, and it never lasted. He needed more. He always needed more.

The Snatcher perked up suddenly, looking back into the forest, tense. The way he’d turned around- he’d detected something off in the distance. Food. Relief.

Primrose watched the creature tread into the forest, suddenly gravitated towards something. She knew it was probably very dangerous, but… she had to know where Luke was going. She had to know why he was like this. She had to know if whatever had happened to him was reversible. She just had to know. Holding her metal broom, she trailed after the Prince, keeping her distance as she followed. Primrose didn’t know how long she followed him, but after what seemed like forever, the shadow ducked down on his hands and feet, keeping out of something’s line of sight. Looking ahead, Primrose could see what appeared to be a large, youthful stag. It paid no attention to the hostile creature nearby, instead bending down by the river for a drink.

The Prince crawled closer and closer, laying flat on the ground when a twig snapped under his boot, which called the attention of the stag towards him. The stag went tense, as if about to run, only for Luke to bolt forwards, latching on to the side of the deer, digging his claws deep into the forest animal’s torso. The two creatures tumbled into the slow river, thrashing about. 

Primrose wanted to run, but her body had frozen in place behind a log she’d ducked under. She felt under fear as she watched Luke lift the deer’s top half up from behind, arms wrapped under its legs. She knew Luke was pitifully weak, unable to lift his suitcase he’d tow back and forth from law school without help. But here he was, hoisting an adult stag, at least two hundred pounds or more in weight, up like it was a puppy. Primrose found her legs trembling when she heard Luke growl again- that dreaded growl she remembered from her last encounter, the twisted, distorted cackle, that sounded like Luke’s hearty laughter grinded against two cheese grates. It brought shivers down her neck.

The Prince grappled with the deer, shoving his head against its neck until he found an opening- then, he bit down hard against the creature’s throat, causing the poor thing to bellow out in agony. Even from a distance, Primrose could hear the grotesque noises of the deer’s flesh being ripped open and torn apart, accompanied by Luke’s awful laughter. She didn’t want to watch anymore… but found she couldn’t look away, either.

Once he was certain the deer was too weak to flee, Luke tossed the creature to the ground, pinning it down and using his talons to rip it’s wound open further. Blood pooled in the gap, overflowing like a river. And yet, Luke didn’t seem interested in it at all. Even as the stag begged and bellowed for mercy, he ripped into it further.

Finally, the wound made a sickening  _ SNAP _ , paired with an awful shriek. Primrose could see a familiar faint blue being to leak from the deer, pooling fast and evaporating even faster. Luke giggled lowly, and bent over to feast.

It was strange, almost sickening, to watch. Luke began to eat away at the creature, zeroing in on the blue substance, not caring if he also ate any blood, flesh, or even bone. Primrose felt insane, watching the Prince of Subcon, highly respected and polite, doubling down and ripping a deer apart, eating it **ALIVE** , as it squirmed and fought against him. The Prince was digging a hole into the deer’s midsection, holding it down and keeping it still, until it suddenly convulsed, then stopped moving. Primrose shuddered as thoughts rushed in her head at what the stag was feeling- if it was even still alive.

The Snatcher licked his jaws clean of blood and soul as he finished nibbling at whatever was left of the deer that he wanted, then started to lick of his hands. He looked back at the river and, as fast as he could, splashed in, shook himself around to clean off, then dashed out, shaking the water residue off and inspecting himself for stains or crumbs. Apparently, even mindless, bloodthirsty killing machines have to look presentable. 

Luke stretched out, not too far from how a cat would, then laid down under a sunbeam, sprawling out and looking rather lethargic. Such a large meal must have made him tired and full… He didn’t seem to notice Primrose. Yet.

In his sleepy haze, the Prince began to whine and mumble. They weren’t harsh noises, like the growls he’d been making, or harsh like animal noises. It was soft and quiet, like his humming, how’d he’d cheer the Subconite children up with his stories and music. A gentle tune with no end and no notes, just a story. If he wasn’t huddled next to the fresh corpse of the wild stag he’d just wrangled to death, it would have almost been rather peaceful.

Almost.

While the Prince dozed, Primrose noticed strange blue sprouts springing up from under the deer. She’d never seen those kinds of sprouts before, and they grew rather quickly- but her attention was derailed once Luke began to rise, looking groggy and dazed. Whatever he’d been eating, it was almost a bit narcotic. He made a strange, almost gleeful chitter, then sniffed the air. Luke went silent, his eyes lowering and focusing…

… right at Primrose.

He growled ever so softly, slowly growing louder, like a car engine.

Primrose froze, starting to slowly back away, ready to run. The Snatcher picked himself up, ambling over and tilting his head curiously. Primrose picked up her pace, and he did as well, hissing.

Then, Primrose broke into a mad dash. 

Luke made a terrible roar, screeching loudly before following in quick pursuit. What the Prince lacked in strength, he made up for in agility. Even while holding a snake a quarter of his own weight, he was able to nearly catch up to Primrose, deathly afraid of serpents. But now, she wasn’t nearly as afraid of them as she was of the shadow creeping up behind her. 

Primrose gulped tightly- then turned on her heel, stopped in her tracks, and held her broom out, feigning ready to strike in any opening or block any attack the Snatcher threatened her with. She was hesitant to hurt Luke… but she tried to look as threatening as possible.

The Snatcher launched himself at her, knocking them both back as he clamped his jaws around her thin metal broom. He hissed loudly, wrapping his long, serpentine tongue around the bar, drool dripping down from his mouth while he tried to force her back to claim another meal. Primrose fought back, struggling against his weight and strength. Luke made a sickening roar, before grabbing the broom and trying to snap it between his fangs, the broom bending in between them.

The monster suddenly reached for her face, attempting to grab her and suffocate her in his palm. Primrose quickly shifted out of the way, earning a hiss and another shove as he tried to break the broom.

“Luke- stop this! You’re- you’re not a monster!” Primrose gasped, turning away in anticipation for an attack…

… that never came.

Opening her eyes, Primrose saw that Luke had gone still. He still held the broom between his jaws, drooling madly, but his body was releasing tension, and he stopped hissing, his gaze resting somewhere between Primrose’s eyes and her jugular.

“L… Lu.... please, Lu… it’s me....” Primrose spoke softly and tenderly, trying to keep Luke calm. “You’re not… you aren’t a monster…”

Primrose watched the beast in front of her slowly calm, his hair flattening and body loosening over her. She slowly reached her hand out to the Snatcher- no, to Luke. 

To her surprise, he didn’t lash out, instead getting closer to her hand, relaxing a bit faster. Something was clicking in his head, she just knew it. As hazy and chaotic as he was, he knew. Deep down, he remembered.

Primrose gently rubbed her hand against his cheek, preparing for a bite in the worst scenario. But Luke, at first, didn’t react to the touch. But surely, he leaned into her palm, embracing the gesture. He seemed to remember her voice, so she decided to keep trying to talk to him.

“L-Luke… what happened to you?” Primrose gently brushed the long bangs out of his face and behind his shoulder. She got no verbal response, instead rubbing his cheek into her hand. Her hand was warm, and he felt so cold…  _ cold… cold… warm… _

“You poor thing…”

Luke huffed, loud and startling enough for Primrose to flinch. Luke kept nuzzling her hand, unbothered. He shut his eyes, purring passively.

It was strange, to Primrose, watching Luke, of all people, act so… feral. His family upheld poise and manners above all else. He and Vanessa were raised to reflect dignity and perfection as future king and queen. Luke wasn’t much for perfection, but this… it was too much to take in. A low rumble rolled from Luke’s throat, but he showed no signs of aggression. Luke gently maneuvered his head so that primrose was scratching his chin.Since he was so passive and so close, Primrose decided to try to inspect him.

It wasn’t that his behavior was alien, his whole appearance was strange. His face looked akin to a jack-O-lantern, with even his nose and ears left off his face, smoothed over from where they’d been last time they’d spoken. Luke was missing a finger on either hand, making him look rather cartoony, especially since the claws had merged into the fingers themselves. Not to mention the insane length his hair had grown, in such a short time, becoming nothing less than a mane. His skin was a deep violet, and his clothes seemed stained in the same color, despite not being a part of him. How strange. 

“Oh…” Primrose sighed, earning a sigh in response from Luke.

“What… what happened with Vanessa…? Did it all go well-”

Luke’s calm expression and demeanor suddenly flipped, into a look of unbridled and pure rage as soon as Primrose uttered the name. His eyes flared, fangs bared, and his hair puffed up, suddenly ready to strike again. He arched his back up high, hissing and eyeing her throat, ready to pounce at a moment’s notice.

Primrose scrambled back a bit. “L-Luke?!” She yelped.

The shadowy Prince dove down, aiming straight for her jugular, fangs sharp enough to cleave right through without any effort- but in a blink of an eye, another purple blur kicked the Snatcher off, sending him flying back a few feet, before both skidded to a stop, the blur yelling something indistinctly at the formal royal. Someone in a purple cloak… holding a broom with a sharpened tip.

“GET AWAY FROM MY SISTER, YOU SOUL SUCKING  _ BASTARD _ !” Sage held his stake on the offense, growling under his mask and watching Luke scramble to his feet, still groggy from his meal. As he shook himself to his feet, Luke hissed at Sage, fueled by anger, and lowered himself down to circle him, looking for a clean opening.

Primrose sat, frozen in disbelief and fear. She wanted to call out to Luke and Sage, to make them stop fighting, but her words died on her tongue. Luke tackled Sage with such a speed that Primrose could hardly see the action, only the result. Sage stumbled back, watching for a second tackle, bracing for a second impact- then shoving his stake directly into the Snatcher’s head, impaling him all the way through his eye.

Primrose wanted to scream, to cry, to shout, but she stayed still. Luke froze mid-lunge, twitching, coughing, sputtering- then froze completely, no noise or movement. Sage stayed still as well, guard up for what seemed like a minute as he watched yellow goop flood out of the wound. He then looked over at Primrose, looking at her reaction, when a soft noise broke the silence. 

Quiet but evil laughter.

Sage hardly had a chance to turn when the Snatcher tackled him again, knocking him to the ground and kicking the breath out of him. The Snatcher hissed as he pulled the stake out from his eye, then tossed the spear aside. Primrose watched in fearful horror as his wound began to bubble and reconnect, slowly reshaping… until his whole eye reformed, as if nothing had ever happened. Luke then pinned Sage down, holding him down by his throat. He opened his jaws, hissing madly at his attacker, enraged at the name (what was a ‘name?’), and pleased at the ease of getting a second meal so soon.

Time seemed to slow down as Primrose gazed on, knowing in her mind what would undoubtedly happen next. Luke dove down to Sage’s neck, biting down on his cloak, and ripped it off as the shoulder, exposing his arm. Then he moved back down and, with a sickening snapping and squishing noise, ripping a chunk of flesh right off of Sage’s arm. Muscle, bone, blood, it was all exposed, blue soul flowing from the wound as Sage screamed out in pure agony from under his mask.

The monster kept digging deeper into the wound, more soul flooding out with each and every bite. The Snatcher seemed so eager and thrilled, to have such easy prey with so much soul! Sage coughed and howled in pain as the creature above him ripped into his arm, practically severing it off of its socket and nibbling at the shoulder, lapping up the soul as it dripped. His body started to feel numb at the tips, and that numbness only crept upwards, expanding and crawling up his body. His vision grew weak as his cries of pain and pleas for help grew quieter by the second. Sage whimpered and turned his head, to get a good look at his killer.

“Pr… prin… ce… Lu…?”

Sage’s head rolled the side limply, the lights behind his mask going dim, then dark. The Snatcher continued to lick away at the horrible wound, even after the soul stopped flowing. He even started to bite into the bone and flesh, but didn’t seem to be too hungry after a few bites, pushing the body aside, content with the meal. He stretched out, then stared at the river, watching his reflection.

Primrose stared, horrified and dumbfounded. This wasn’t real. None of it was. Luke did  **not** just murder Sage right in front of her. It was a bad dream. She would wake up, make breakfast for Sage, and meet up with Luke later in the day to discuss how wonderfully his proposition to Vanessa went, and they would chat over a nice ice cream and brownie dessert, Luke’s favorite from the restaurant across the street.

But the longer she looked, the harder it became to dismiss. She couldn’t deny the cruppled body in a puddle of blood, next to the shadow of her friend-turned-feral. The longer she looked, the more the creature next to Sage looked less and less like Luke, and more and more like The Snatcher.

Just another monster.

Primrose stood up, holding her metal broom tightly in her hand, judgment in her eyes. Her eyes were filled with hate and rage.

Just another monster.

He was licking Sage’s blood off his arm, not caring about the corpse of her brother that he just murdered in front of her. That wasn’t Luke. He just looked like him. He didn’t care what he did, who he hunted, what he hurt. He only cared for himself.

That wasn’t  _ her _ friend.

Primrose quietly paced over to the creature, who didn’t notice her approach, too caught up in his own business. She swiftly lifted up the end of the room over her head, holding it by the bristled end, glaring right into the Snatcher’s head- and swung it down directly on his back, beating the beast with no mercy, no hesitation.

The Snatcher yelped in surprise, anger, and pain, quickly turning to his attacker, only to be bombarded by more strikes. He hissed and yelped every time the broom landed, again, and again, and again, and again.

Primrose kept attacking without thought, watching the creature curl up and whimper, beads of yellow collecting at its eyes and dripping down its face, flinching and cringing and screeching out with every connection-

The memory was sudden and vivid. The dark forest and the long hill. Seeing Luke, curled in on himself. How he was smiling just a second before. Blood covering his clothes and limbs. Hair a mess. His leg, bruising quick and leaking blood. Bo, curled around him and hissing. The bite marks. Curled in on himself, whimpering, begging for help, cringing at every movement or pressure-

Primrose lifted the broom over her head, as though ready for another strike, but instead dropped it back and fell to her knees, gasping for air as she looked at the Snatcher. Seeing him curl up, whimper, and look so… so pathetic, it hurt her. Seeing his reaction, she couldn’t doubt it.

The creature softly whimpered, even after the beating ceased. Every area she hit him was already bruised, but quickly fading as fast as it was darkening. The healing wasn’t stopping the monst- stopping Luke from feeling the pain.

‘I caused this’, Primrose thought. She wiped a tear from her eye, stumbling over the broom as she backed off. ‘I’m hurting him.’

Luke suddenly jerked upright, hissing in anger- or perhaps even fear. He folded his lips back and bared his fangs, his tongue flicking at her. He pushed himself up, puffed out his chest, and-

“ **PRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRIIIIIIIIM.** ”

Without another word, he quickly turned and ran, scurrying deep into the woods under the cover of shadow.

Primrose stood, in complete silence, staring off in the direction Luke ran in. In complete silence, she watched. And in complete silence, she crumpled to her knees and broke down, sobbing incoherently.

Sage was _ dead. _

Luke was  _ unreachable. _

She took her anger out on him, and chased him off.

Her one chance,  _ gone. _

Now, she was _ alone _ .

Primrose covered her face in her hands, sobbing wildly. But something caught her attention. A faint green light, barely visible from behind her hands.

Peeling her hands back, Primrose stared blankly at Sage’s corpse, watching a soft and pale light slowly pulsate from his chest- then, with a quick flash, a small serpentine figure rose. A small body, sparkling like a pale green galaxy. But her eyes landed on the mask that the figure dawned- identical to Sage’s mask, except it looked… sadder, with worried eyebrows engraved into it and black marks dripping down from the bottom of the eyes, like black tears.

The dweller glanced around, unsure of what happened. That’s when its gaze fell upon Primrose, and realization flooded the two of them.

_ ‘My brother is a dweller.’ _

_ ‘I died in front of my sister.’ _

Primrose choked back more tears, pushing her face back into her elbow and sobbing wildly. She sputtered incoherently, babbling nonsense about Luke and Sage and herself.

She felt a soft push against her leg, and looked down to see Sage- erm, his dweller, nudging up against her leg. He then glanced up at her, silently trying to speak to her. He couldn’t speak no matter how hard he tried, nothing came out of his non-existent mouth. He couldn’t smile to reassure her, or hold her hand to calm her. He looked back at his corpse, watching the bugs begin flocking around it.

Primrose slowly reached out to Sage, who didn’t notice her. She gently pulled him into a hug and held him tenderly and closely, holding him in her lap to ease herself. Normally, no dweller could be touched, but, strangely enough, those killed by Luke could. Primrose held him close, putting her head against his mask as he continued to stare blankly at his former husk. 

Sage broke his stare to nudge Primrose a little, the only way he could try to comfort her. Primrose held him a bit tighter, then let him go. She stood up, rubbing his mask softly. “Let’s give you a proper burial, alright?”

Pulling her hair back, she got to work, bending down and digging a hole into the forest’s loose and wet topsoil. She pushed the soil aside, then picked Sage’s body up, removing the mask and waving the flies away from him. She then placed it into the ditch she’d created, filling the crevice with the dirt she moved, pushing and molding it into a compact lump. After that, she placed his mask on the dirt, then sat and inspected the make-shift grave. 

Sage slithered in the air over to her side, looking down at the grave she made for him. Primrose leaned against his pale green body, for just a moment, before standing up, glancing at Sage to let him know to follow, and began to walk home.


End file.
